My older brother had a ranch outside of Silt, another brother in Rifle. Neither lives in Colorado anymore. Said the politics are getting pretty bad. Those on the Western Slope are a pretty independent and don't want outside influence in their lives.

On Portland, OR. Another younger brother moved to that area right after high school. He is now in Vancouver, WA. Again, the politics and tax structure of a fairly liberal political balance of power area.

I would seriously consider some mid-sized town on the Washington side of the Columbia River with easy access to decent shopping in Oregon, but just east of the Cascades, (for mild winters and abundant sunshine days). It's pretty far from Oregon, but Pullman or Spokane intrigue me. I'd like to be in a college town, because of the youthful attitude and opportunity for some culture, (stage plays and symphonies). I also have ancestral roots in western Idaho, but don't know any living relatives in the area now.